Wednesday, July 1, 2009

I usually have a lot to say about NBA and with the recent activity in the league I have to say a few things.

The first being that my hometown team, the Wizards, could of had Rubio, or could they have? Because the truth is that Rubio will only play for a few teams including two teams from LA, the Bulls, and Knicks. Out of those two teams, two are garbage and none really have the pieces to put together a trade offer to Minnesota. So Rubio's solution is to stay at home under the embrace of his homeland, Spain, where he can yield offers from European teams. Granted, how cowardly this is and has been talked about quite thoroughly, but can we also discuss how unfair this is to our own American players.

As we all know, Rubio is only 18, where American player would have to be 19 to enter the draft. The difference between the two is the 19 year old American can't all of a sudden turn back and go back to his former team which the NCAA won't allow. Then if you ask that kid to go to Europe they will probably make considerably less money than Rubio who already has European basketball experience. So the 19 year old is stuck, playing for a rebuilding franchise in the freezing cold. Some may say that the 19 year old is still getting paid to do so, but this isn't about money, its about fairness.

Its really about the pandering to European athletes by the NBA. The evidence includes refusing to do anything about their flopping on the court, and not punishing those who refuse to play for their American teams. Besides correcting the refereeing, the NBA should establish longer draft rights that are more like five years instead of two that would punish draft dodgers by guaranteeing that their best years are spent overseas. On top of that, the league should stipulate that only those who are contract free can enter the draft. This could prevent overseas teams from coming up with astronomical dollar amounts for transfer fees. So if you're young and overseas, signing a long term contract wouldn't be in your best interests.

And to reemphasize, Rubio is a coward. If you don't like the heat or cold for that matter, then get out of the draft.